Waste extraction hose

Abstract

To provide a dirt removal hose which enables reduction of a worker's burden in connection work to a dirt tank.SOLUTION: The disclosure relates to a dirt removal hose configured to connect with a dirt tank of a railway vehicle. The dirt removal hose includes: a hose body; and a coupler connected to the hose body. The coupler has: a connection part which may be attached to or detached from a discharge valve provided at the dirt tank; and a joint part which is fixed to an end of the hose body and holds the connection part in a manner that an attitude of the connection part relative to the hose body can vary.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a waste extraction hose. [Background technology]

[0002] In railcars equipped with waste tanks, waste is periodically removed from the waste tanks using a waste removal hose connected to a removal facility installed at the railcar depot.

[0003] The tip of the waste removal hose is provided with a coupler that can be connected to the discharge valve of the waste tank (see Patent Document 1). [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Publication No. 2020-169015 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] To efficiently remove waste, waste extraction hoses have a certain diameter. They also have a certain rigidity to prevent waste from accumulating due to bending. Therefore, waste extraction hoses have little flexibility.

[0006] However, at the depot, the position of the waste tank's discharge valve relative to the extraction equipment is not always consistent due to variations in the vehicle's stopping position. To compensate for this misalignment, workers must adjust the position and orientation of the coupler by holding and maneuvering the waste extraction hose. However, maneuvering the waste extraction hose is not easy due to its poor flexibility.

[0007] In response to this problem, the waste extraction hose is provided with multiple rotatable cranks, which can be used to rotate the waste extraction hose to adjust the position of the coupler. However, connecting the coupler to the discharge valve requires fine adjustment of the coupler while holding the waste extraction hose, which still places a heavy burden on the operator.

[0008] One aspect of the present disclosure aims to provide a waste extraction hose that can reduce the burden on a worker when connecting it to a waste tank. [Means for solving the problem]

[0009] One aspect of the present disclosure is a waste extraction hose configured to be connected to a waste tank of a railway vehicle. The waste extraction hose includes a hose body and a coupler connected to the hose body. The coupler has a connection portion that is detachable from a discharge valve provided on the waste tank, and a joint portion that is fixed to an end of the hose body and holds the connection portion so that the position of the connection portion relative to the hose body is variable.

[0010] With this configuration, the position of the connector of the coupler can be changed relative to the hose body, so the position and orientation of the connector can be adjusted without moving the entire waste extraction hose. This makes it easy to fine-tune the connection of the coupler to the discharge valve, reducing the burden on the worker when connecting to the waste tank.

[0011] In one aspect of the present disclosure, the connection part may have a spherical part provided with a flow path communicating with the hose body. The fitting part may have a connecting pipe connected to the hose body and a socket fixed to the connecting pipe and rotatably receiving the spherical part. This configuration allows for a simple and highly reliable adjustable structure of the connection part.

[0012] In one aspect of the present disclosure, the hose body may include a suction hose having a spiral groove on its outer circumferential surface and a coil spring attached to the outer circumferential surface of the suction hose to compress the suction hose in the axial direction. This configuration improves the extensibility of the hose body due to the restoring force of the compressed suction hose. This facilitates the handling of the hose body when connecting the waste extraction hose to the waste tank. This, in turn, reduces the burden of connecting the waste tank. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0013] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing an example of use of a waste extraction hose in an embodiment. [Figure 2] 2A is a schematic front view of the discharge valve of the waste tank of FIG. 1, and FIG. 2B is a schematic cross-sectional view taken along line IIB-IIB of FIG. 2A. [Figure 3] FIG. 3 is a schematic cross-sectional view of the waste extraction hose of FIG. [Figure 4] 4 is a schematic front view of a connecting portion of a coupler in the waste extraction hose of FIG. [Figure 5] FIG. 5 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing the waste removal hose of FIG. 1 in a state where the spherical portion is rotated. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0014] Hereinafter, embodiments to which the present disclosure is applied will be described with reference to the drawings. [1. First embodiment] [1-1.Configuration] The waste extraction hose 1 shown in FIG. 1 is a device for extracting waste from a waste tank 101 of a railway vehicle 100 and discharging the waste into a waste treatment tank 200 in a vehicle depot.

[0015] The waste tank 101 has a discharge valve 102 shown in Figures 2A and 2B. The discharge valve 102 has a claw-shaped engaged portion 102B that protrudes radially outward from a valve body 102A.

[0016] The waste extraction hose 1 shown in Figure 1 is configured so that a first end 1A is connected to a waste tank 101. A second end 1B of the waste extraction hose 1 is connected to a waste treatment tank 200. The waste extraction hose 1 includes a hose body 2 and a coupler 3.

[0017] <Hose body> As shown in FIG. 3, the hose body 2 includes a suction hose 21 and a coil spring 22.

[0018] (suction hose) The suction hose 21 is a bellows-shaped cylindrical body, and has a spiral groove 21A on its outer circumferential surface. The outer circumferential surface of the suction hose 21 has peaks and valleys alternately arranged along the axial direction (i.e., the longitudinal direction).

[0019] The suction hose 21 has, for example, a cylindrical body and a string-like reinforcing member wound spirally around the cylindrical body. The reinforcing member forms a spiral groove 21A on the surface of the cylindrical body.

[0020] The suction hose 21 is expandable and contractible in the axial direction due to the spiral groove 21 A. The suction hose 21 is made of a flexible resin such as nylon.

[0021] (coil spring) The coil spring 22 is attached to the outer circumferential surface of the suction hose 21. Specifically, the coil spring 22 is wound around the suction hose 21 so as to be inserted into the spiral groove 21A on the outer circumferential surface of the suction hose 21.

[0022] The coil spring 22 axially compresses the suction hose 21. Therefore, the portion of the suction hose 21 to which the coil spring 22 is attached is more compressed in the axial direction than the portion to which the coil spring 22 is not attached (for example, the upstream end 2A).

[0023] The coil spring 22 is attached to the suction hose 21 in a state in which it is stretched in the axial direction from its natural length. The coil spring 22 is made of a metal such as stainless steel.

[0024] <Coupler> The coupler 3 has a connection portion 31 and a joint portion 32 .

[0025] (Connection) The connecting part 31 is a part that can be attached to and detached from the discharge valve 102 provided in the waste tank 101. The connecting part 31 has a base pipe 311, an engaging part 312, a spherical part 313, and a handle 314.

[0026] The base pipe 311 is a straight pipe section that is directly connected to the discharge valve 102. An engagement portion 312 is provided on the surface of the base pipe 311 on the side that is connected to the discharge valve 102 (i.e., the upstream side). The end of the base pipe 311 on the opposite side to the discharge valve 102 (i.e., the downstream side) is inserted into a spherical portion 313.

[0027] The engaging portion 312 is a portion that can engage with the engaged portion 102B of the discharge valve 102. As shown in Fig. 4, the engaging portion 312 has a first hook 312A and a second hook 312B that are provided at positions facing each other across the central axis of the base piping 311.

[0028] 3, the first hook 312A and the second hook 312B each protrude from an end of the base piping 311 in the axial direction of the base piping 311. The first hook 312A and the second hook 312B are elastically deformable. Furthermore, the first hook 312A and the second hook 312B are molded integrally with the base piping 311.

[0029] The spherical portion 313 has an outer shape that is a truncated sphere obtained by cutting a sphere between two parallel planes. Specifically, the spherical portion 313 has a shape obtained by cutting both ends in the axial direction of the base piping 311 from a true sphere.

[0030] The spherical portion 313 is fixed to the base pipe 311. Inside the spherical portion 313, a second flow path 313A (i.e., a hollow portion) that communicates with the first flow path 311A ​​provided in the base pipe 311 is provided.

[0031] The second flow path 313A communicates with the hose body 2 via the joint part 32. That is, inside the spherical part 313, the fluid (i.e., waste) delivered from the discharge valve 102 passes toward the hose body 2.

[0032] When the connection part 31 is attached to the discharge valve 102, a part of the valve body 102A of the discharge valve 102 is inserted into the base pipe 311 and the spherical part 313 (i.e., into the first flow path 311A ​​and the second flow path 313A).

[0033] The handle 314 is connected to the engaging portion 312. By gripping the handle 314 and rotating the engaging portion 312, the first hook 312A and the second hook 312B can be engaged with the engaged portion 102B of the discharge valve 102.

[0034] (Joint part) The joint part 32 is fixed to the upstream end part 2A of the hose body 2 and holds the connection part 31 so that the position of the connection part 31 relative to the hose body 2 is variable. In other words, the joint part 32 has a universal joint structure. The joint part 32 has a connecting pipe 321 and a socket 322.

[0035] The connecting pipe 321 is a straight pipe portion connected to the hose body 2. Specifically, the connecting pipe 321 is inserted into the upstream end portion 2A of the hose body 2. The connecting pipe 321 does not rotate or move relative to the hose body 2. A third flow path 321A provided in the connecting pipe 321 communicates with an internal flow path of the hose body 2.

[0036] The socket 322 is fixed to the connecting pipe 321. Specifically, the upstream end of the connecting pipe 321 is inserted into the socket 322. The socket 322 and the connecting pipe 321 are fixed together by a fixing means such as a screw.

[0037] Socket 322 rotatably accommodates spherical portion 313. That is, socket 322 has internal space 322A that rotatably holds spherical portion 313. The downstream end of spherical portion 313 is accommodated inside socket 322. The upstream end of spherical portion 313 is exposed from socket 322.

[0038] The portion of internal space 322A of socket 322 where spherical portion 313 is not disposed forms a flow path that connects second flow path 313A of spherical portion 313 and third flow path 321A of connecting pipe 321.

[0039] That is, the fluid discharged from the discharge valve 102 of the waste tank 101 is sent to the hose body 2 through the first flow path 311A, the second flow path 313A, the internal space 322A, and the third flow path 321A.

[0040] 5, the spherical portion 313 can be rotated in any direction within the socket 322. By rotating the spherical portion 313 relative to the socket 322, the posture (i.e., direction) of the base piping 311 and the engaging portion 312 can be changed without changing the position and posture of the hose body 2.

[0041] Furthermore, the position of the engaging portion 312 can be adjusted by rotating the spherical portion 313 around the central axis of the base pipe 311. This makes it easy to align the engaging portion 312 with the exhaust valve 102.

[0042] [1-2.Effects] According to the embodiment described above in detail, the following effects can be obtained. (1a) Because the orientation of the connection part 31 of the coupler 3 is variable relative to the hose body 2, the position and orientation of the connection part 31 can be adjusted without moving the entire waste extraction hose 1. This makes it easy to make fine adjustments to connect the coupler 3 to the discharge valve 102, thereby reducing the burden on the worker in connecting the coupler to the waste tank 101.

[0043] (1b) By combining the spherical portion 313 and the socket 322, a simple and highly reliable variable structure of the connecting portion 31 can be realized.

[0044] (1c) The restoring force of the compressed suction hose 21 improves the extensibility of the hose body 2. This makes it easier to handle the hose body 2 when connecting the waste extraction hose 1 to the waste tank 101. As a result, the burden of connecting the hose body 2 to the waste tank 101 can be reduced.

[0045] 2. Other Embodiments Although the embodiments of the present disclosure have been described above, it goes without saying that the present disclosure is not limited to the above-described embodiments and can take on various forms.

[0046] (2a) In the waste removal hose of the above embodiment, the connecting portion does not necessarily have to have a spherical portion as long as the joint portion can hold the connecting portion so that the position of the connecting portion relative to the hose body can be changed.

[0047] (2b) In the waste removal hose of the above embodiment, the hose body does not necessarily have to have a coil spring. Therefore, the hose body may be composed of only a suction hose.

[0048] (2c) The function of one component in the above embodiments may be distributed among multiple components, or the functions of multiple components may be integrated into one component. Also, part of the configuration of the above embodiments may be omitted. Furthermore, at least part of the configuration of the above embodiments may be added to or substituted for the configuration of another of the above embodiments. All aspects included in the technical idea identified by the wording of the claims are embodiments of the present disclosure. [Explanation of symbols]

[0049] 1... Waste extraction hose, 1A... First end, 1B... Second end, 2... Hose body, 2A...upstream end portion, 3...coupler, 21...suction hose, 21A...groove, 22... coil spring, 31... connection part, 32... joint part, 100... railway vehicle, 101... waste tank, 102... discharge valve, 102A... valve body, 102B...engaged portion, 200...sewage treatment tank, 311...base piping, 311A...first flow path, 312...engagement portion, 312A...first hook, 312B...second hook, 313...spherical portion, 313A...second flow path, 314...handle, 321...connecting pipe, 321A...third flow path, 322...socket, 322A...internal space.

Claims

1. 1. A waste extraction hose configured to be connected to a waste tank of a rail car, comprising: A hose body, a coupler connected to the hose body; Equipped with The coupler is a connecting portion detachably attached to a discharge valve provided in the waste tank; a coupling portion that is fixed to an end of the hose body and that holds the connection portion so that the position of the connection portion relative to the hose body is variable; A waste extraction hose having a

2. The waste extraction hose according to claim 1, the connecting portion has a spherical portion provided with a flow path communicating with the hose body, The joint portion is a connecting pipe connected to the hose body; a socket fixed to the connecting pipe and rotatably receiving the spherical portion; A waste extraction hose having a

3. The waste extraction hose according to claim 1 or 2, The hose body is a suction hose having a spiral groove on its outer circumferential surface; a coil spring attached to an outer peripheral surface of the suction hose and compressing the suction hose in an axial direction; A waste extraction hose having a

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